Hi!  I’m Fran McCollum.  Welcome to the new member introductions area!  The photos show our piece of suburbia, enjoyed with my husband and at times with my two daughters who are newly launched into the job world & far away.  I have always enjoyed nature, travel and books, with the little free time I’ve had while teaching for over a decade.  In the past two years my husband and I have initiated low-energy measures at home, a low-water landscape, and rain catchment.  I also tried cooking in a solar oven (above)!  My husband is an orchestral musician in his spare time.  He travels frequently but found time to plan most of the solar improvements and did general planning with me as well as all of the heavy lifting.  We began to remodel with, make, and use more organic and natural products.  This is both to protect the earth and to enjoy maximum health.  I am interested in gardening, health, and a few other hobbies as time allows.  This is the part of the blog where you tell us something about yourself, in about 200 words or less (about as long as this!)  You can try to post your photo in the text or email it to me at green4christ@sbcglobal.net